Medco Launches Medical Benefit Management Program To Better Manage Specialty Drug Spending, Coverage Needs

FRANKLIN LAKES, N.J., Feb. 13, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Expensive specialty drugs, which are used to treat rare or complex medical conditions, have been one of the fastest growing categories in health care for nearly a decade, as price inflation and higher utilization continue to increase costs.  Medco Health Solutions, Inc. (NYSE:MHS), has introduced a new medical benefit management program to better manage specialty medications covered under major medical plans by bringing greater efficiencies around the coverage of these drugs.

(Logo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20100609/MEDCOLOGO )



Medco and its subsidiary Accredo Health Group, Inc. have successfully assisted numerous clients in shifting coverage of specialty drugs to the pharmacy benefit to gain a better handle on their costs.  With medical benefit management, Medco will now provide greater cost transparency to health plans and employers that wish to continue coverage of specialty drugs under their medical plans.

"We developed this program in order to extend the best practices in specialty pharmacy to major medical coverage," said Frank Sheehy, president of Accredo.  "Historically, health insurers and other payors have not focused on the prevention of waste or the management of specialty drugs that fall within the medical benefit.  This has cost them an estimated $8 billion annually from lack of compliance, over-utilization, non-formulary drug use and other inefficiencies.  We are offering to reduce an administrative burden for health plan sponsors, while also providing an elevated standard of care."

Medco is implementing the new product in partnership with NovoLogix, Inc, an established industry leader in the management of specialty medications within the medical benefit. NovoLogix's software, which has been used to manage medical specialty for over 18 million patients, will provide the infrastructure inside Medco's medical benefit management program.

1 2 3 4 Next › Last »